Wintek Factory Strike Ends, Back to Business As Usual

Workers at a Wintek plant in Taiwan that manufactures touch screens for Apple's iPhone and iPod touch are back on the job now that factory officials have promised employees Lunar New Year bonuses, according to DigiTimes.

Wintek has been claiming that the strike didn't impact production despite reports that some machinery was damaged during the multi-day incident.

Some reports claimed workers were striking because they had been told promised bonuses had been cancelled, but others said factory workers were reacting to a government investigation that found no wrong doing on the part of factory officials in the deaths of employees.

Employees blocked roads at the factory, damaged cars, and threw rocks at police to protest their pay scale and potentially hazardous working conditions.

"The truth has been hidden from public view. There are people dying from long-term exposure to the toxicant used in the factory but no one is paying attention to that," commented one factory employee after the strike began.

Employees have been complaining about the use of hexane, a chemical that can potentially cause nervous system failure in humans, to clean touch panels. According to Wintek, 47 factory workers showed symptoms of hexane exposure and were properly treated.

Despite the differing reports on why employees launched a violent protest, it appears that they are now back on the job.